Live Poker Event Coming to Upstate New York

Date Written: May 14, 2017

Written by: Kyle Joseph

It seems as though the upstate New York casino industry cannot stay out of the headlines as of late. This time, a casino in Schenectady is making headlines because it recently announced that it will play host to the largest live poker tournament currently in existence. On Wednesday May 24th, the Capital Region Classic Poker Tournament will be held. The tournament will actually run from Wednesday the 24th, through Sunday the 28th.

Courtesy of Rush Street GamingRenderings of the Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, Illinois, created by Rush Street Gaming.

A Not So New Endeavor

Rivers Casino and Resort in Schenectady is no stranger to live poker tournaments. Since opening its doors at the beginning of February, there have been a number of events with hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes given away. While this is so, the Capital Region event will be, by far, the biggest tournament held to date.

The event being held at the end of the month has a guaranteed prizepool of $100,000, and is sure to bring in many visitors. The first event of the tournament will have $25,000 worth of chips available, but the grandy daddy of them all on Sunday will have 4 times that amount available. Registration for the event begins on May 17th and can be done with the caisno’s cashier over the phone or in-person.

Rivers’ Poker Manager David Grubb commented on the situation by saying, “We wanted our first big poker tournament to be player-friendly and accessible to players at all levels of skill and experience.”

Gambling Landscape of Upstate New York Ever-Changing

For those who may be somewhat unfamiliar with the casino industry in New York, Rivers is just one of four non-Native American casinos that exist in the state. The state had authorized these sites to exist back in 2015, and they have just begun to open their doors. Through the first few months, revenues have exceeded expectations at almost every turn. While this is not so surprising, it will be interesting to see what happens as the casinos age and become more familiar rather than a new phenomenon.

As time wears on, and the New York casino industry remains as successful as it has been, there are going to remain lingering questions with regard to when, if ever, a casino resort (or resorts, plural) will be able to exist in or around New York City. At the present moment in time, those residing near New York City have few convenient options for gambling. They can travel north to Connecticut where there are 2 sites, travel a few hours south to Atlantic City, or travel to northeastern Pennsylvania. As the upstate industry continues to boom, many feel as though it is only a matter of time before casinos begin to expanded eastward and southward to the New York City area.

As if it weren’t abundantly clear already, the East Coast is ripe with casino stories as the overall industry is absolutely booming. For the foreseeable future, it seems as though our almost undivided attention will be placed on states like New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. It is truly an exciting time for casinos in this part of the United States